Investigators are currently assessing whether the ceiling’s soundproofing material adhered to safety standards and if the candles used in the establishment were approved for such environments.

Valais regulations mandate yearly fire safety evaluations for publicly accessible buildings, with regional authorities indicating that these inspections fall under municipal jurisdiction.

On Tuesday, officials from Crans-Montana announced that Le Constellation had undergone fire safety inspections in 2016, 2018, and 2019, during which some updates were recommended. However, the soundproofing materials had not been flagged as problematic during these evaluations.

After reviewing documentation post-incident, the municipal government of Crans-Montana, led by Nicolas Féraud, revealed that “periodic checks were not conducted between 2020 and 2025,” as stated during a press briefing.

“We deeply regret this oversight,” Féraud expressed, noting that judicial authorities would need to ascertain the role this lapse played in the circumstances surrounding the fire.

Féraud said he couldn’t immediately explain why safety inspections hadn’t been conducted for such a long time.

Féraud said that, in September last year, an external expert had been asked to carry out a soundproofing analysis and had concluded that the bar complied with anti-noise rules, without making further remarks.

The severity of burns made it difficult to identify some victims of the fire that broke out at about 1.30am on New Year’s Day, requiring families to supply authorities with DNA samples.

Investigators finished identifying the 40 dead on Sunday and said on Monday that they had identified all 116 people who were injured, from several countries.

On Monday, the Paris prosecutor’s office announced that it was opening a probe to assist the Swiss investigation and make it easier for families of French victims to communicate with Swiss investigators.

Nine French citizens were killed, the youngest 14, and 23 were injured.

Féraud said reports from the inspections that were carried out mentioned a maximum capacity of 100 people on the bar’s ground floor and 100 in its basement.

It’s unclear how many people were in Le Constellation when the blaze broke out and investigators have said that may never be known.

The municipality said the bar’s owner obtained a permit to build a veranda in 2015 and also carried out interior work at the bar that did not require a permit.

It said it has now decided to ban the use of fireworks indoors and commission an external agency to carry out inspections of such establishments.